The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of geranium plant, botanically known as Pelargonium zonale, and hereinafter referred to by the cultivar name xe2x80x98Fispurplexe2x80x99.
xe2x80x98Fispurplexe2x80x99 is a product of a planned breeding program which had the objective of creating new geranium varieties with purple to cherry-red flower color and relatively compact plant habit.
xe2x80x98Fispurplexe2x80x99 originates from spontaneous seed set of the variety xe2x80x98Robexe2x80x99 (unpatented), discovered in Galdar, Gran Canaria, Spain, in 1992 by the inventor, Angelika Utecht. The commercial variety xe2x80x98Robexe2x80x99 is characterized by dark-red to purple-red, semi-double flowers, medium-green foliage with weak zonation and compact plant habit.
xe2x80x98Fispurplexe2x80x99 was selected as one flowering plant within the progeny of the stated seed set by the inventor, Angelika Utecht, in 1993 in a controlled environment in Galdar, Gran Canaria, Spain.
The first act of asexual reproduction of xe2x80x98Fispurplexe2x80x99 was accomplished when vegetative cuttings were taken from the initial selection in autumn 1993 in a controlled environment in Galdar, Gran Canaria, Spain, by, or under the supervision of, Angelika Utecht. Horticultural examination of plants grown from cuttings of the plant, initiated in May 1996, in Hillscheid, Germany, and continuing thereafter, has demonstrated that the combination of characteristics as herein disclosed for xe2x80x98Fispurplexe2x80x99 are firmly fixed and are retained through successive generations of asexual reproduction.
The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be basic characteristics of xe2x80x98Fispurplexe2x80x99, which in combination distinguish this geranium as a new and distinct cultivar:
1. Brilliant purple-red colored, round, semi-double flowers;
2. Medium to large, tight, nearly semi-spherically shaped umbels;
3. Medium-green foliage with weak zonation;
4. Relatively compact, low, but wide, plant habit; and
5. Mid-season spring flowering response.
xe2x80x98Fispurplexe2x80x99 has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype of the new cultivar may vary significantly with variations in environment such as temperature, light intensity and day length without any change in the genotype. The following observations, measurements, and comparisons describe plants grown in Hillscheid, Germany, and in Langley, British Columbia, Canada, under greenhouse conditions which approximate those generally used in commercial practice.
Of the many commercial cultivars known to the present inventor, the most similar in comparison to xe2x80x98Fispurplexe2x80x99 are the variety xe2x80x98Fismagxe2x80x99 (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 8,725) and the parental variety xe2x80x98Robexe2x80x99. In comparison to xe2x80x98Fismagxe2x80x99, xe2x80x98Fispurplexe2x80x99 has smaller and more round-shaped flowers with a distinctly more intense and more bluish tone of color. Furthermore, xe2x80x98Fispurplexe2x80x99 grows less vigorously and remains relatively low and compact, while xe2x80x98Fismagxe2x80x99 tends to develop a tall and somewhat more open plant habit during the summer.
In comparison to xe2x80x98Robexe2x80x99, xe2x80x98Fispurplexe2x80x99 has a more purple-red tone of flower color, in contrast to the deep cherry-red of xe2x80x98Robexe2x80x99, and somewhat more intense green color of foliage, zonation and sepals.